Sovereign over the Wind

In a storm when the rain is pouring down in torrents, the wind is raging and the boat is rocking, there is one thing I think we all want to know. Who is really in control? Is it me, is it circumstances or is it God? As we journey this month looking at the wind, we will see beyond a shadow of doubt that it is God who is all Powerful, All Seeing, All Knowing and it is He who is Sovereign. He holds the reins. His Sovereignty is never, ever in question! When we are hit with bad news, our security is threatened, our kids go astray or any other frightening thing happens, it is so good to know God is with us and He has all the clout. There is no "if." He is still the same as the God who said to Moses, “I AM.” I AM, oh praise God, there is no more Holy Awesome One than the great I AM.

This past week I was messaged and asked to intercede for three elderly folk who had been kidnapped. My heart sank as I imagined their fear; no one knew quite where they were being held. Negotiations were taking place as the kidnappers demanded a ransom. I could only imagine the helpless, powerless sense of hopelessness that their loved ones must have felt. But Praise God - they chose to look up and prayers went up for their release. Two days ago I heard they were safe and free.

Matthew 8:23-27

When He got into the boat, His disciples followed Him. And suddenly a violent storm arose on the sea, so that the boat was being covered by the waves; but Jesus was sleeping. And the disciples went and woke Him, saying, “Lord, save us; we are going to die!” He said to them, “Why are you afraid, you men of little faith?” Then He got up and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was [at once] a great and wonderful calm [a perfect peacefulness].The men wondered in amazement, saying, “What kind of man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey Him?”

Studying God’s word, I am reassured over and over again that it is God who holds the reins and has the final say. As we saw with Jesus in the boat when the disciples feared sinking and drowning, Jesus took charge and commanded the wind to stop and the storm to abate, and calm was restored at His word. The disciples were amazed and terrified regarding their friend with awe. Who is this man that even the wind and the waves obey him?

John 14:9 

Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you for so long a time, and you do not know Me yet, Philip, nor recognize clearly who I am? Anyone who has seen Me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father?’"

And of course. this Man is Jesus, who we know is God, the One Who we revere as King of Kings, and Who, in His own words, said, “If you have seen me, then you have seen God the Father.” Jesus revealed God. God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit are three in one. And so again, I can say it is God who is in control!

At a time when the world in which we are living is facing many, many challenges, it is good that we can with absolute confidence say, "Yes, it is not all good news, but none of this has taken our God by surprise." He has given us some warning, some insight into the times that are coming, and at the same time He has revealed His Sovereignty. He has not changed and nothing will interfere with His plans and purpose for the world in which we live because He remains in control.

Often when we read scripture, we ask the questions;What is God saying to me, what is He trying to teach me, perhaps something I need to change, something I need to do? All good, very good, yet another equally important question to ask is, "What is God showing me about Himself?" What truth is He revealing to me that reveals how indescribably powerful, just and good He is? It is in the scriptures that we see something of His majesty, Power and Sovereignty. And it is in the wind that we see something of his immense strength and supernatural power, His ability that gives us such comfort and raises our faith as we recognize how truly He is God of the impossible. El Shaddai!

Exodus 10:13 

So Moses stretched out his staff over the land of Egypt, and the Lord brought an east wind on the land all that day and all that night; when it was morning, the east wind had brought the [swarms of] locusts.

It was Pharaoh who had no idea who he was dealing with when he stubbornly refused to allow the Israelites to leave Egypt. But God was going to show him and allow the Israelite slaves to see with their own eyes something of the God they worshipped and called Yahweh. Miracle after miracle, God performed through Moses, showing his power and His control over the elements, the wind, as well as the creatures, frogs, flies and locusts.

Exodus 14:21

Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea; and the Lord swept the sea back by a strong east wind all that night and turned the seabed into dry land, and the waters were divided. 

And later, when the Israelites were finally permitted to leave only to be pursued once again by Pharaoh, we read how God used the wind to enable their escape.

1 Kings 19:11-13

So He said, “Go out and stand on the mountain before the Lord.” And behold, the Lord was passing by, and a great and powerful wind was tearing out the mountains and breaking the rocks in pieces before the Lord; but the Lord was not in the wind. And after the wind, [there was] an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake, [there was] a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire; and after the fire, [there was] the sound of a gentle blowing. When Elijah heard the sound, he wrapped his face in his mantle (cloak) and went out and stood in the entrance of the cave. And behold, a voice came to him and said, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”

This is a third vivid description of the power of the wind. What incredible power and strength, and if you have experienced wind, you will have some understanding. Years ago I lived right on the sea in Cape Town and my word, the wind could blow. One time it ripped our deck cover right out of its concrete block, took the plastic furniture and hurled it into the sea and left the surroundings in a mess. Nothing we could do but hunker down and wait until it subsided and calm returned. I can’t begin to imagine the strength of a wind that divided the waters.

Romans 9:17

For the Scripture says to Pharaoh, “I raised you up for this very purpose, to display My power in [dealing with] you, and so that My name would be proclaimed in all the earth.”

God wants the world to know of His Great Power. God often uses natural elements to accomplish His Perfect Will; He is in no way limited, for everything is under His control. I stress that because sometimes we can mistakenly believe that we have control, and in co-working with God we can influence and determine the outcome. We must be sure that our effectiveness in accomplishing God’s Will is totally dependent on Him. We pray and speak His truth and God, through the Holy Spirit, does all the work. I say He is Sovereign so easily, but what does that really mean? And why is it so necessary for us to know that God has unlimited power? First, a definition: sovereign means having the highest power. Power that is supreme, absolute, unrestricted or unrestrained.

Psalm 135:6-7

Whatever the Lord pleases, He does, In the heavens and on the earth, in the seas and all deeps. Who causes the clouds to rise from the ends of the earth; Who makes lightning for the rain, Who brings the wind from His storehouses.

As we can so clearly see God has absolute charge over the earth, and there is nothing He cannot do, we can rest in absolute assurance that we can pray and ask Him for the impossible. We can put our trust in Him. We can ask for anything that is in His Will with the right motive. That includes giving sight to the blind, cleansing the leper and raising the dead. He is not dependent on man or man’s actions to accomplish His Perfect Will. But having said that, how He longs for us to work with Him, to pray that His will be done and to do all that we know to be His Will. To cooperate with Him wholeheartedly in everything.

Ephesians 6:12

For our struggle is not against flesh and blood [contending only with physical opponents], but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this [present] darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly (supernatural) places.                                                                                                                                                                             

Remember, the battle that rages in the world today is not between God and satan; that battle was won at the cross. Christ defeated satan without any reservation and through His death and resurrection He gives us, who believe, the same victory. The battle rages between man and satan as satan tries to kill, steal and destroy. He claims those who do not acknowledge Christ and repent to be his own, and those in Christ he looks to weaken, confuse, and tie up in knots. 

John 3:8

The wind blows where it wishes and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it is coming from and where it is going; so it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.

Which leads us into the truth of the New Testament. Having an amazing picture of this immense power behind the winds, the scriptures now reveal the Holy Spirit, Who is likened to the wind. He is not the wind, but like the wind, He can move the mountains, shatter the rocks, part the seas and empower God’s people to do the works of Jesus Christ. He is the One given to us so that we may live victorious lives and God says He, the Holy Spirit, is like the wind!

Like the wind, we cannot see the Holy Spirit; we don’t know where He goes; we cannot even explain how He works, but we know He is there. In the same way He works in our lives, we cannot see Him; we cannot explain how He works, but He is there. And He is God. The same God Who wants the world to recognize His very existence and to know that He is the just and merciful God able to save. The Holy Spirit lives in all who have surrendered their lives to Jesus. He is the One who gives us gifts, gifts that magnify and reveal Jesus. When a sick person is healed by the power of the Holy Spirit, Jesus is glorified.

My encouragement to each one who reads this is to see that you are an instrument in God’s mighty hands; may you yield and allow Him to reveal His wonder-working power through you. Be sure to be equipped, born again, baptized in the Holy Spirit, baptized in water and yielded to the Spirit. And then, be of good courage and trust the Spirit of God, who, like a mighty wind, hovers over you to do the work of God. Speak to the mountain (the obstacles and difficulties in your life), speak to the sick that they may be healed, and trust that the Holy Spirit will do it!

Let's Pray:

Father, fill us with courage to do as You ask that You be glorified. Let the world see Your power, and the lost seek your saving grace. Not by might nor power but by your Holy Spirit. Amen.